Ergot fungus

fungus species

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Alternative Title:
Claviceps purpurea

Claviceps purpurea attacks rye and other cereal grasses, causing the plant disease ergot. This fungus is also the source of lysergic acid, the active component of the psychedelic drug LSD, and of other compounds used in obstetrics drugs.Walter Dawn

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Ascomycota

…A related genus, Claviceps, includes C. purpurea, the cause of ergot of rye and ergotism in humans and domestic animals. Earth tongue is the common name for the more than 80 Geoglossum species of the order Helotiales. They produce black to brown, club-shaped fruiting structures on soil or on decaying…

ergot disease

…species of the ascomycete fungus Claviceps. The disease decreases the production of viable grains by infected plants and can contaminate harvests. Ergot is commonly associated with rye infected by C. purpurea, but other economically important cereals are also susceptible to the disease by other fungal species. For example, ergot of…

hallucinogens

…this way—e.g., LSD and the ergot (a fungus) that grows on rye, psilocybin from mushrooms, mescaline from the peyote cactus, and tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) from marijuana. Hallucinations also can be induced by input overload produced mechanically, such as bombarding several sensory systems with intense stimuli simultaneously (e.g., with bright flashing lights…

poisonous microfungi

…fungi, such as ergot (Claviceps purpurea) and some mushrooms, to produce intoxication has long been known. During the 19th century it was recognized that molds are responsible for such diseases as yellow-rice toxicoses in Japan and alimentary toxic aleukia in Russia. The eruption of so-called turkey X disease in…

production of LSD

…flour caused by the fungus Claviceps purpurea). LSD usually is prepared by chemical synthesis in a laboratory. Its basic chemical structure is similar to that of the ergot alkaloids, and it is structurally related to several other drugs (e.g., bufotenine, psilocybin, harmine, and ibogaine), which can all block the action…

source of alkaloids

…poppy (Papaver somniferum) and the ergot fungus (Claviceps) each contain about 30 different types. Certain plant families are particularly rich in alkaloids; all plants of the poppy family (Papaveraceae) are thought to contain them, for example. The Ranunculaceae (buttercups), Solanaceae (nightshades), and Amaryllidaceae (amaryllis) are other prominent alkaloid-containing